celebrity – Pursuing Prayer

So all the people took off the gold rings that were on their ears and brought them to Aaron. He took the gold from them, fashioned it with an engraving tool, and made it into an image of a calf. Then they said, “Israel, these are your gods, who brought you up from the land of Egypt!” When Aaron saw this, he built an altar in front of it and made an announcement: “There will be a festival to the Lord tomorrow.” (Exodus 32:3-5 CSB)

The world has been in festival mode this past week. The 2026 Winter Olympics opened in Milan/Cortina, Italy last Friday, and the competition continues for over two weeks. Elite athletes from all over the globe will demonstrate their skills and artistry on the snow and ice. And there will be a lot of gold medals worn around the necks of the winners, held up for admiration, while flags and banners are waved. News organizations will present stories of glorious achievements, humble beginnings, determination, bravery, and pride. Hometowns and home nations will cheer their local favorites as they compete. And some of the winners will become (or already are) celebrities. One of the figure skaters has been proclaimed “the Quad God” for his ability to execute “quad” jumps– jumping with enough height and speed to complete four rotations in mid-air before landing safely–in all six of the jump categories.

At the same time, American Football fans were gearing up for the “Superbowl” game last Sunday. Many of the athletes who compete in professional football earn millions of dollars each season for their ability to run, pass, catch, guard, kick, and otherwise help their team get a leather oblong object into an “end zone” and score points. And many of them also become celebrities, making even more money for endorsing items, shooting commercials, dating other celebrities, etc. But this year, the attention was not so much on the football teams or individual players in the game. The attention was on two “teams” offering entertainment during the half-time break. There was Team Bad Bunny v. Team Turning Point.

I have no idea who “won” the entertainment competition– reports vary from different sources. Both claim to have been very popular and successful. Both claim to have represented “America” and patriotism in their very different ways.

But a few days away from the hoopla of opening ceremonies and early competitions and Facebook feuds between people defending their half-time viewing (who seemingly didn’t bother to watch the actual football game!), I’m reminded of a festival that took place thousands of years ago in the wilderness.

At the very moment when Moses was on Mt. Sinai, talking to God and receiving the sacred Commandments, the people of Israel were having an orgy in direct rebellion against God. About three months before this profane festival, the Israelites were leaving behind generations of slavery and oppression in Egypt. God, through miracles and plagues, rescued His people, and even caused the Egyptians to be generous, loading them down with gifts of gold, silver, precious gems, and other resources. Now, three months later, after God’s miraculous victory over the Egyptian army at the Red Sea, and his provision of meat, bread, and water in the desert, the same people who promised to serve the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob– the God who had rescued and sustained them throughout their travels–were piling up “their” gold to create “their” own “god.” A golden calf, that could neither hear nor see; neither speak nor walk– a lifeless image made from their own fear and pride and self-righteous pronouncements.

There was no Golden Calf at the Superbowl– there was a “Bad Bunny” instead. And, lest the “other team” feel superior, they appear to have abandoned the Solid Rock for a Kid Rock. Two celebrities (among many others represented that night) catering to the whims and visions of “America” held by two warring factions. And in Italy, there is the “Quad God” and athletes who are using the spotlight to lecture the world on morality and virtue. The world is pinning its hopes and affections on false gods and goddesses, man-made virtues, and ideals of what makes us “holy.”

Yet here we are, several days later, and I don’t experience any of the virtues or morals that are being touted by these self-proclaimed “gods” and “spokespeople.” Bad Bunny ended his “entertainment” by saying, “The only thing more powerful than hate is love.” Sounds virtuous– even inspirational–except I don’t see the love. I hear screaming, posturing, hatred for anyone who doesn’t share the same “message,” and tribalism. I see angry faces and violence against neighbors. We’ve replaced the real virtue of Love with the false virtue of “being holier than thou.”

⁴Love is patient, love is kind. Love does not envy, is not boastful, is not arrogant, ⁵is not rude, is not self-seeking, is not irritable, and does not keep a record of wrongs. ⁶Love finds no joy in unrighteousness but rejoices in the truth. ⁷It bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.⁸Love never ends. But as for prophecies, they will come to an end; as for tongues, they will cease; as for knowledge, it will come to an end. 1 Corintians 13:4-8 (CSB)

And strangely enough, it took me several hours to find out who actually “won” the Superbowl game on Sunday (congratulations, Seattle Seahawks!) or find out about who won medals in sports other than ice skating. Everyone was fighting over backflips, bunnies, rocks, ideologies, sound bites, and flags.

“These are your gods…” Who (or what) is really worthy of our praise, trust, commitment, and love? Are we worshipping idols, or ideals, that do not reflect God’s love? In our quest to be on the “right side” of history, are we repeating some historical mistakes? Whatever takes up most of our energy, our affection, our loyalty, and our time– those ARE our gods– whether we acknowledge them as such or not.

Holy and Majestic God, I pray that I would truly love you with all my heart, soul, mind, and strength. May I be so focused on You, Your Word, and Your Character, that I would not turn my eyes, ears, or heart to another. Help me to remember what You say about Love, and to wait for Your guidance and leadership as I travel through the wilderness of our culture. Amen!

“Of the Father’s Love Begotten”
by Aurelius C. Prudentius, 413, cento
Translated by John. M. Neale, 1818-1866
and Henry W. Baker, 1821-1977

1. Of the Father’s love begotten
Ere the worlds began to be,
He is Alpha and Omega,
He the Source, the Ending He,
Of the things that are, that have been,
And that future years shall see
Evermore and evermore.
2. Oh, that birth forever blessed
When the Virgin, full of grace,
By the Holy Ghost conceiving,
Bare the Savior of our race,
And the Babe, the world’s Redeemer,
First revealed His sacred face
Evermore and evermore.

3. O ye heights of heaven, adore Him;
Angel hosts, His praises sing;
Powers, dominions, bow before Him
And extol our God and King.
Let no tongue on earth be silent,
Every voice in concert ring
Evermore and evermore.

4. This is He whom Heaven-taught singers
Sang of old with one accord;
Whom the Scriptures of the prophets
Promised in their faithful word.
Now He shines, the Long-expected;
Let creation praise its Lord
Evermore and evermore.

5. Christ, to Thee, with God the Father,
And, O Holy Ghost, to Thee
Hymn and chant and high thanksgiving
And unending praises be,
Honor, glory, and dominion,
And eternal victory
Evermore and evermore.
taken from http://www.lutheranhymnal.com

Christ’s Humility and Exaltation
⁵Adopt the same attitude as that of Christ Jesus,
⁶who, existing in the form of God,
did not consider equality with God
as something to be exploited.^[a
⁷Instead he emptied himself
by assuming the form of a servant,
taking on the likeness of humanity.
And when he had come as a man,
⁸he humbled himself by becoming obedient
to the point of death—
even to death on a cross.
⁹For this reason God highly exalted him
and gave him the name
that is above every name,
¹⁰so that at the name of Jesus
every knee will bow—
in heaven and on earth
and under the earth—
¹¹and every tongue will confess
that Jesus Christ is Lord,
to the glory of God the Father.
Philippians 2:5-11 (Christian Standard Bible–CSB)

An early Christian poet penned the words for this Christmas Hymn over 1500 years ago. He was echoing the words of the Apostle Paul from 400 years before that. Paul’s “hymn” was expressing truths penned by prophets and songmakers stretching back centuries before his time. From the earliest recorded writings of Moses we see the same themes: God is eternal–eternal in existence, eternal in power, eternal in glory; God extends himself on behalf of his creation–giving, sacrificing, inviting, forgiving; God exalts the humble–he notices the overlooked, elevates the lowly, honors the meek.

These themes have not changed in centuries, but our interpretation and usage of them has. I still love this old hymn, and the passage from Philippians, but I see people, Christians and non-Christians alike, using phrases like, “Let no tongue on earth be silent,” and “Every knee shall bow” not as invitations or extensions of God’s glory and sacrifice, but as threats. I find this understandable, but not defensible– especially coming from Christians.

I think our modern world has lost much of its wonder and ability to see “honor, glory and dominion.” We spend our days “debunking” any idea or person who might seem worthy of respect or honor, but we replace them with ideas and people who are less worthy of respect, because they make us feel superior and smug in our own complacent, convenient lives. We are satisfied by glitter, instead of seeking glory. We have given the word “dominion” the same negative connotation as “colonialism” or “conquest”. We do not choose to honor humility or service– we celebrate what is brash, flashy, loud, and self-serving.

Some of our modern churches and worship services fall into the same trap. We give more honor to the worship band and the comfortable seats than we do to the creator of the heavens. We spend our money on t-shirts and CDs proclaiming the wonders of OUR faith, but we don’t have any money to share with those in need just two streets away. I am not saying that this is unique to our time, or that the early Church was without fault. But there is a very different feeling one gets in entering a medieval church or cathedral–they were not built for human comfort, but to inspire the sort of knee-bowing, tongue-confessing awe found in the ancient hymns. Jesus grabbing a cup of Joe and plopping down next to us in a climate-controlled, renovated movie theater does not have the same effect. We are sometimes left with the impression that Glory is ephemeral and glittery, and God is more interested in our comfort than in our transformation.

So when we read that God is eternally glorious and that every knee WILL bow and every tongue WILL confess– we see this as coming from a self-important little-g “god” who compels his creation to worship him out of a vain desire for imputed glory. In contrast, the Bible presents a God whose very nature IS Glorious. We worship him when we see him as he is. When we choose in this life to exalt ourselves and ignore God’s invitation, and the ways in which he reveals his glory here on earth, it doesn’t diminish his glory or change his nature.

Consider a beautiful sunset. There was a glorious sunset in our area last Saturday night. Several of my friends posted pictures of it– it was awe-inspiring! That was its very nature. But many people missed seeing it, or recognizing its beauty. After all, the sun sets every day. This sunset came and went like all the others. The sky didn’t force anyone to look at it, but it was visible to anyone who would see it. God’s presence, when fully revealed, will be stunning in its Glory and impossible to ignore. Every knee WILL bow and every tongue WILL confess– simply in awe of it. God invites us to open our eyes, to catch glimpses (like Saturday’s sunset) of the glory he imputes to even the most ordinary and humble things in life.

And so it was in the incarnation. God’s glory arrived in the form of a baby– one among thousands in Judea, His divine nature wrapped in the ordinariness of arms and legs, cooing and crying like any other baby, born in obscurity, yet announced from the beginning and heralded by the very hosts of heaven– Here HE is! Come and behold Him! Worship and adore Him! Evermore and Evermore!

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“These Are Your Gods…”

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